U.A.E. (Days 1-2)

I left Singapore at 9:15pm on Malaysia Airlines. Stopped in KL and arrived in Dubai at 3am Sunday morning. It's amazing how I don't think twice about traveling anymore! Though, I must say, it was a shock when I found out the flight I was getting on was also flying to Beirut. It was crazy to think I was headed to Beirut, and that's when I fully realized I was flying to the Middle East!

I stayed with the Olson's, who I know through a good friend from college. I've had the pleasure of visiting the Olson's on three different continents now: I spent a week with them at the beach in Florida, where they lived for a year or two; I also spent some time with them in London when I was staying there for the summer. Now I have a pleasure of staying with these citizens of the world, yet again, in the U.A.E.

Because I arrived in the middle of the night, the Olson's instructed me to pick up a "package" at the front desk of their apartment complex. Hidden in a copy of the Economist, was a key to their flat. I let myself in and found my way to the study (thanks to arrow maps Mrs. Olson left for me on the floor). I was in a dream state when I heard Mike calling my name in the morning.

On Day 1, the Olson's took me to the famous Mall of the Emirates (if you recall from an earlier blog post, I had the fortune of a 7 hour layover in Dubai, and I hopped in a cab, did a whirlwind tour of the city in a cab at night, and spent some time wandering around the Emirates Mall, to check out the indoor ski slope. Well, I didn't have the heart to tell Mrs. Olson I'd already seen Ski Dubai, and feigned amusement instead). Mrs. Olson also showed us the theater and arts complex that's attached to the mall, where we saw a photography exhibit called Dubai 1962 (by a Japanese photographer, Y. Kawashima). These photos depicted a very different Dubai than the one you see today.

That night we met some other expat families (Oil Tycoons and the like), and had coffee with them at a Starbucks located at another Housing Complex (JBR). Sadly, this is what you do in Dubai. Go to expat hangouts and people watch with a coffee outside housing developments. Later, the Olson's took me to see the beach, drove out to The Palm, and drove by the impressive Atlantis Hotel (this is the hotel with a shark in the lobby).

Dubai Day 2

I woke up to a pretty lazy morning, where we lounged around and read by the pool. After lunch, we headed to the Dubai Creek (aka "Old Dubai"). Here is where you start feeling like you're in the Middle East. Mike and I took lots of pictures (hence what you see on the blog!) We walked around and went to the souks (the marketplace. think of the character in the opening of Aladdin, but not as obnoxious!) We saw all the spices and teas, and one vendor even explained what each of the spices were and the teas were good for, etc. I tried a chocolate covered date (dates are big in the M.E.). Mike was shopping around for sunglasses, so we got led to a couple of shops tucked away, mostly in second or third story shops in surreptitious alleys; all offering the latest in designer hand bags!

We then went to the gold souks, which Dubai is known for. The Olson's kept telling me how pure gold is yellow gold, but Westerner's are more used to a silver gold, so the yellow gold looks fake to a Western eye. Because of this, a lot of the souks started selling both types of gold.

We took a water taxi (see pictures of the boats that carry about 30 men) across the creek and saw the Fabric souks. We ate dinner along the creek (yummy hummus!) And we got ready for the big event of the evening: the Moscow Hotel.

Yes, the Olson's took me to a Russian Nightclub. Awesome. And there is nothing Mr. Olson could have said that would have prepared me for this place! The Nightclub was called the Bolshoy, and it was the favorite hangout of Mr. Olson's best friend and business associate. It was this man who invited us along for the night. The Bolshoy has an all-you-can-eat Russian buffet on Monday nights, so we took full advantage! The servers are all dressed like Russian officers in the days of Anna Karinina. There was one maitre 'd like server who stood out, because he wore a black-velvet cape over his uniform, and he had this smarmy expression on his face the whole time. When we arrived, there was a sax player (and keyboardist) playing cheesy covers, mostly elevator jazz. Eventually, two Russian singers joined in the mix.

Our host put Mikey and me at the end of the table (the side extending out onto the dance floor). I wasn't quite prepared for what this meant. I sat next to a man named Tinker--another "associate" who trained fighters in various Middle Eastern locations (i.e. Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, etc) His wife, who was  also there, is Russian. She explained the food to us. And we ate a lot of unidentifiable food at that.

As we're enjoying our food, disco lights come swirling around. Cue Atlantic City type music and enter giant women dressed in clown suits with giant peacock feather hats! It was then that I realized that I should have drank more before this show!

pre-recorded music. The second dance was a wedding motif; just one man and woman, ballroom style. Others were "the cleaners," set to 1950s music. The tall Russian man came out with a mop, and the chick came out with a dish rag and wash basin--lots of movement filled with sexual innuendos. A favorite of mine was the WWII Women Officer motif. But my all time favorite was the Umbrella dance (no, not Rhianna). It was well choreographed, but the tight leather outfits were a bit disturbing...

The dancing was decent, but not altogether polished. I much more enjoyed watching the clientele. Lots of pairs of men came in to be eroticised by the women. (Though none of this seemed very erotic compared to our Western standards.) It was fun watching the face of this one man who sat at the very edge of the stage. He clearly thought he was hot stuff, and was fully absorbed in the entertainment, as he made eyes at every woman who came his way. Some scantily clad women confidently strutted into the room like they owned the place, headed to meet their rich benefactors, no doubt. There was even an Emirate man who was there, met by a Western-dressed woman.

So there you have it! The Moscow Hotel! A trip to Russia and back...in the United Arab Emirates.


(For Day 3, check out the Abu Dhabi posting!)

United Arab Emirates (Days 4-6)

Day 4:

The Olsons went off to their scuba class, so I had the day to myself. I went to the Dubai Museum. I did some reading and such in the afternoon, and went to dinner with them at the marina. We played spades in the evening.

Day 5:

The Jumeriah Mosque

Every Thursday morning, this mosque opens up to the public in a program they call, "Open Doors, Open Minds." Not only do you get to see the mosque, but you have a guide that gives you a tutorial on the Islamic Faith. It was very interesting! It started with a demonstration on the cleansing process. Before prayer, (which is five times a day), Muslims wash themselves from head to toe. Our guide, an Emirate (who married Debbie from Chicago), explained this to us and demonstrated at the wash basin. Then he took us inside the mosque; everyone has to remove their shoes and women cover their heads. We sat inside the mosque as the guide talked about the faith, the customs, the rituals, the prayer, (which he also demonstrated for us), the misconceptions (i.e. the wearing of the burqa isn't mandated within the Koran; women choose what they wear; covering up is partially fashion, partially for climate reasons...protection from the sun, etc).

I'm glad I got a look inside, and the experience was very enlightening. (Forces in America, in the government, have painted a very bad light of the Arab world, and it's really unfortunate that the preconceptions have been built into us citizens.) I feel like I'm aware of these things, but visiting this mosque and visiting the U.A.E., I think made me more aware of my own ingrained mis-perceptions. The whole notion that we're almost trained to feel fear when we see an Arab or that there's something inherently bad in the Middle East (and I know this may sound like I'm stating the obvious) but there's not!!! True practitioners of the Islamic Faith are just deeply devout individuals. Just like devout Christians, Jews, Buddhists, etc. And actually, the tenants of the faith are very similar to Christianity, and notions of Thou shall not kill...lie...steal...cheat...etc, are the same! Treat your neighbor as yourself. Yeah. The terrorists who kill themselves and others "for the Koran" are NOT following the Koran; they're not being true to their faith! It's the same as a Klu Klux Klan member killing an African American and saying "the Bible told me to." Would the white Western world want everybody in it to be perceived and judged based on the terrible actions of the Klu Klux Klan? I hope not.

The difference in fashion, and the different ways of practicing a belief system should not be such a dividing force in our world. And we need to not let these misconceptions taint the way we treat/perceive other cultures and peoples. People, who are just like ourselves in many ways.

After the mosque, we went to the Golden Horse Hotel. This was the place I saw on my taxi drive around Dubai in January and I knew then I had to come back. This was yet another gorgeous and lavish hotel. The driveway outside is lined with bronze statues of horses, and the view is beautiful.

That night, we went to the beach.

Day 6

Mr. Olson drove us to the "L's". I'm not sure why it's called this. He drove us to a spot about 10 miles south of Dubai; where all the future plans for Dubai are....were...being built: Sports City, Media City; Motor City (F1 Track); Sports City; Studio City (yup, for filmmakers!); Dubailand (hello amusement park!)...and, well, they spent too much too fast, and the economy crashed (future city planners beware!) They had soo much construction going on at once, which has pretty much gone to a halt. It's a deserted desert land in the sand.

We drove past the complexes where the TCNs live (Third Country Nationals; the labour work first) and we drove past all the construction sites, and saw all the projects intended to be built (probably won't be, at least not for a long time). We also drove into a development out there that has been completed, where people (mostly expats) live, but, now they live in the middle of no where! It's called Arabian Ranches. It looks like a suburban development in Arizona. And it's amazing how much irrigation is in Dubai. Landscaping is a source of pride and symbol of wealth here. It's a symbol of luxury in the desert.

We also drove by a Bedouin settlement. The Bedouins are a nomadic tribe in the UAE. And they have camels! (We saw an entire herd!)

That night, Mr. Olson took Mikey and I to the Emirates Golf Club. Apparently, it's the only golf club in the Middle East that Tiger Woods will play on! Mike and I played tennis with the night skyline surrounding us.

I went swimming and hopped on a plane. Dubai to Moscow (what a fiasco that was!) to Chicago to Philly to home. And boy I was glad to be home!